When The Sun Rose Again
by Shadowfox83
Summary: She should have died with The Reapers' destruction but perhaps with the help of her friends and the one she loves Shepard can come to terms as to why she's still alive and what it is that fate truly has in store for her. Post-ME3 FemShep/Kelly centric


**When the sun rose again**

**A Mass Effect 3 Fanfic**

**By: Shadowfox83**

**Disclaimer:** The characters, settling, story, and all things Mass Effect are property of EA/Bioware.

* * *

Amidst the sea of confusion that was her mind something deep within the recesses of her subconscious began to stir, a desire of sorts desperately attempting to awaken her from a slumber she couldn't recall taking.

She felt her breathing so soft, weaken, humbled, so unlike her it wasn't who she was it wasn't who people knew her as. The simplistic method of her breathing was all she could make out until a single one of her ocean blue orbs began to creak open the other following suite shortly after.

She wasn't sure where she was, her memories for the moment a terrible clutter of a mess impossible to make heads or tails of. The throbbing in the back of her skull a constant annoyance even as her state of consciousness slowly improved.

Where was she? How did she get here? The memories of the past still fractured scattered as if they had taken the form of glass…something inside her argued that she should be dead yet another, possibly the portion that forced her to awaken, urged the opposite her time wasn't done there were still people out there that needed her.

The flash of a young woman sparked in her recovering mind. Like her a beautiful freckle-faced redhead the key differences being that this girl was a few years her junior and her eyes sparkled as if they were twin emeralds.

Her heart-rate quickening for a moment as she recalled the memory of the young lady…

However before she could remember anymore she barely caught the sound of an individual shouting out for a doctor!

A doctor, she wondered. Had they found her somewhere, she thought as her eyes lazily drifted upward eventually resting on the paneled-ceiling high above.

A building…?

The sound of constant beeping suddenly ringing in her ears, where was that coming from?

Wait a second she paused, her mind with less haze then before, she was in a building someone was calling for assistance and the sound was from…

"Honestly you never seem to surprise anymore."

Someone called out to her in response she shifted the position of her head as best she could, rather surprised herself that the rest of her body gave off a feeling of being anchored down.

"Can you hear me, Commander?" the much older woman asked, her clothing clearly that of the stationed medical staff.

Commander…her tone and that singular word…

Commander…

Commander…

"Chawkas…"

She heard herself mutter unsure if the other woman had even heard her.

"Doctor…Chawkas…"

A reassuring smile seemingly appeared on the good doctor who followed up with a simple nod.

"Yes Shepard…it's me…and it's good to have you back."

Shepard…

Shepard…

"_You did good child…you did real good_…"

It was as if a bolt of lightning had surged through her very core reaching the tip of her head to the edge of her toes. The memories from before suddenly realigning to form whole images as her past flashed before her eyes. Her friends, fellow comrades, and even multiple antagonists all coming into focus all reminding her of who she was who she's always been!

She gasped as she felt her heart skip a beat intentionally ignoring the pain brought forth from the sudden action.

She remembered, she remembered it all!

Her name was Hayley Shepard, Commander of the SSV Normandy, Interstellar Heroine, and by God savoir of humanity and the entire galaxy!

"Shepard please I understand if this is all rather sudden for you but you must refrain from any sudden movements. Your body at this state of recovery can not afford any re-aggravation."

The older woman explained taking the next couple of minutes to completely check her over.

"Where am I?" she asked at last finding her voice, although understandably weaken in tone.

The gray-haired green-eyed doctor kept her words simple to ensure she didn't lose or confused the wounded redhead. She listened in silence as Chakwas explained how she had been found buried near-death, rubble all around her, inside an unknown room on the now damaged space station known as The Citadel.

It was nothing sort of a miracle that the team of alliance operatives were able to track her position, thanks in part to the faint signal of her damaged omni-tool, expertly retrieve and extract her from what could have easily been her grave. The doctor continued on stating that she was currently housed in the intensive care section of the STX-Dakota, as she would come to understand a medical vessel belonging to the alliance.

She was surprised however to hear that nearly a year had passed since the war against the monstrous synthetic beings known as The Reapers had come to a decisive end. In that time-span the injuries she had sustained during the final assault and ultimate decision on the citadel had left her broken form in a coma only several months ago she did recover from.

Afterwards the decision was made to leave the heroic woman on continuous life-support a decision that came from the mind of Admiral Steven Hackett, one of her closest confidants, the man stressed that she be given the chance to reawaken never once allowing his faith in her incredible resilience to bend. He knew better then that for it seemed that no matter what the galaxy threw at her Shepard would find a way to defy all odds.

Slowly the healing redhead took in all the information. Surprised to be alive, surprised to hear of how much time had passed since she was last conscious…an almost amusing sense of deja-vu washed over her she held short on laughter however considering that nearly sixty percent of her body was either hurt, healing, bandaged, or in a cast of some sort.

Twice it had appeared as if her life had come to an end and twice she had been denied by the fates…no it was more then that, at the age of sixteen on her home colony of Midoir when the violent Batarians raids occurred she should have died but she didn't…years later on Akuze she was the sole survivor again when the rest of her squad fell to a frightening Thresher Maw, thanks in part to the actions of the now shut-downed Cerberus organization.

Because of that she had to admit to herself that for a while a part of her honestly believed that the battle to take back the earth would result in her definitive passing…and strangely she was alright with that. Perhaps that train of thought had been born due to everything she had gone through and experienced from her sixteenth birthday onward, a weight so heavy that even someone as emotionally powerful as her had at last been burned completely out.

Despite resurrection at the hands of Cerberus, after The Collectors had taken her life from her, she was still human after all and even the strongest individuals can only take so much torture before the mask of confidence breaks and falls revealing the wounded truth hidden behind it.

In any case she smiled inwardly guess it really wasn't her time and there was still more for her do in this life of hers. Maybe now with the threat of the reapers finally over she could at last find a moment of peace and relaxation…then again knowing her luck…

"You're really sure you um…felt her _presence_, was that what you called it?"

Jeff "Joker" Moreau, pilot of the Normandy SR-2, asked over the intercom linking him with the brilliant Doctor Liara T'Soni, Asari researcher who doubled as the infamous information broker appropriately named The Shadow Broker.

"Yes, she and I shared minds one last time before the conclusive battle in doing so I made sure that in the end if…the worse had truly occurred…I'd know."

The rugged pilot sat quiet swearing he could easily hear Liara swallow the lump that had formed in her throat.

"The simple fact that something went off in my mind tells me I'm correct on my assumption of her well-being."

She continued after the understandable pause Joker giving her as much time as she needed to gather herself.

"So you're absolutely sure then?"

"Yes, I have to be. If anything…for _her_ sake…"

He didn't have to be told twice the young man knew what she meant by that so he did what he had to and that was continue directing the Normandy back in the direction of the Sol system no matter how long the journey would take…

Days later she felt herself awaken yet again due to the sound of that pestering I.V. that found itself connected to her left forearm. Being bed-ridden wasn't so much terrible as it was terribly boring the poor woman had nothing to do other then rest, eat, sleep, stare at the ceiling, or listen to the holo-radio sitting beside her bed.

In ways this was a worst hell then getting shot up by that reaper bastard, Harbinger, she thought as a way to amuse herself, in reality though it was just that an amusing thought especially after having truly rested on the realization that she was still alive.

Soon enough she'd get out of this bed, back onto her feet, and continue the life she was seemingly blessed to have.

She was just about to start up the radio with a quick vocal command when she overheard the sound of someone entering her private room.

"Shepard, I can't tell you how surprised I was when I read the report of your survival much less the most recent of which stated that you were fully conscious."

That gruff yet commanding tone could only belong to one man.

"Admiral Hackett, Sir." She stated her voice still healing along with the rest of her despite that she still attempted something of a salute only to be cut short as several stinging painful sensations ran through her hurting limbs.

"At ease, Commander, no need for you to re-aggravate those dreadful injures of yours on my account. Now Shepard before anything else I have to commend you on your actions taken to end the war with The Reapers. I know none of it was easy or without great sacrifice but you have made all of humanity and every member of the alliance proud. Know that we will forever be in your debt."

"Thank you, Sir."

The two of them exchanging quick simplistic smiles with one another, hers however faded as she recalled the sacrifice her superior had spoken of.

"This damnable war robbed us of so many…"

Images of the deceased flashing through her mind…

"Kaidan, Mordin, Thane, Anderson, EDI…The Geth…all the innocents on The Citadel…"

"And we will mourn and honor each of them Shepard for what you ultimately accomplished means that their deaths will never be seen as meaningless. We and future generations will always honor their brave sacrifices with our continued existence for no war is won without any sense of loss, Commander."

She knew that well and nodded as best she could in response.

"In any case Shepard I want you take as much time as you need to get back on your feet. The front-lines always need a good solider but you've more then earned your rest. We'll still be here once you've recovered after all it's about time we and the other galactic races began getting things done ourselves rather then solely depending on you to pull us out of the fire."

Again she gave a silent nod as her only response…however…

"Admiral…you have my thanks for never giving up on me." She stated softly as a sudden realization came to mind.

"I always knew you'd pull through…because it's what you've always done, Shepard."

His respectful words brought a smile to her lips as her superior continued to make his way out the door.

He was right about everything and only after Hackett had left did she suddenly curse herself out due to her forgetfulness about the status of her crew…

A few months later the redheaded commander found herself on her usual spot by her room's window. Thankful yet again that at long last her body had healed to the point where she was no longer bed-ridden.

While her mid-section and left bicep were still under-wraps along with her right foot and arm in protective casts the woman was just glad to be up and around even if it meant on crutches. Mostly because out of personal pride she outright refused to use any sort of chair and her augmented strength meant only a singular crutch was required to support her weight.

Staring out into the vastness of space, a grand view of the similarly healing Earth in the horizon, she spotted that cleanup work was still being done on The Citadel. The memories of that dire event still fresh in her mind made her instinctively clutch onto the crutch at her side.

"You still find it to be such a wondrous view?"

The Commander smiled a tad the memories from before fading away as she overheard Doctor Chakwas enter the room. The older woman had gotten used to seeing Shepard by her favorite spot each time she came in to check up on the redhead.

"In a way, yeah, still can't believe we pulled it off."

The gray-haired medic explaining that it was because of the way she had brought practically every race in galaxy together to fight off those who would have annihilated them all.

"It is as much our victory as it is theirs."

She agreed wholeheartedly as she turned slightly so she'd be facing the good doctor.

The checkups never took too long a time and soon enough Chakwas was bidding her farewell after stating that her recovery was still progressing at an incredible rate. She knew she was still ways off from possibly returning to active duty but it was always good for her confidence to hear that she was getting stronger with each passing day…

By this time her gaze had returned to the expanse of space outside yet her eyes would snap in attention at the sudden knock at her door.

"Forget something, doctor?" she inquired expecting the familiar figure of her friend.

"Sorry but the medical field wasn't something I studied up on."

At that moment her jaw nearly fell straight through the floor as she heard herself gasp out loud! That voice it couldn't be, there was no way she had been on the citadel she saw what had become of those that had the misfortune of being trapped there during the climax of the reaper invasion!

It just wasn't possible, ironically ignoring that her actual survival should be classified under the same possibility.

Her eyes wide after catching a slight glimpse in the reflection of the glass she turned slowly and as best she could eventually coming face to face with the one person she never thought she'd see again…the one person she had long ago promised to always take care of…

"Kelly"

She stated with a slight choke.

"Hello…Hayley"

The younger girl said in response a soft smile on her lips, tears clearly beginning to form on the edges of her emerald eyes.

Not wasting anymore time the former Yeoman sprinted on over grabbing a hold of Shepard with a hug of surprisingly tightness. The older woman held in a grunt of pain surging from the sudden action of affection. She didn't have the heart to tell Kelly to ease up, hell a part of her didn't want the girl to ever let go.

"Shepard I can't believe…I thought…I thought…that you had been…"

Her breaking words were instantly silenced as their lips met again for the first time since they had last been alone together. It had been far too long since she had last tasted drank in the sweet essence of her former yeoman. It was a feeling she wanted to relish in for as long as she possibly could.

As they broke mildly apart Shepard stared at the blissful eyes of the younger woman, whom she held on to as well as she could given her current condition.

"Kelly…I saw what had happened on The Citadel. I wasn't sure if you had…the thought that I had been too late…that I couldn't keep my promise…that I couldn't save you…"

She couldn't remember the last time she had openly wept. The only time she could recall doing so was during the grief she felt when her family had been brutally murdered at the hands of the Batarians. She had vowed that day that no matter what she would never allow any sorts of tears to exit from her deep ocean-blue eyes.

She would be strong for them for everyone she'd ever come across but this was different as each new tear ran down the sides of her heated cheeks Shepard knew that it was alright and perfectly in her right to do so for these weren't tears born of sadness these were of utter happiness, of the joy she felt at having Kelly back in her arms back in her life!

This time it was the younger girl's turn to take action as she gently guided her arms upward and around her love's tender neck, their lips reconnecting with one another not a moment later.

Even with Shepard in a recovering state the two of them stood there together locked in a moment of passion of deep affection that neither was ready to let go of, the gentle sound of their collective tears meeting with the pavement below serving as the only audible sound as their seemingly eternal lip-lock continued onward.

As she deepen the kiss on her end Shepard's happiness poured straight into the very core of younger gentler Kelly smiling from within as she could hear the girl moan briefly in loving affection. Soon enough Kelly returned the favor with just as much vigor she had waited for this moment for far too long and now her whole world was nothing but unrivaled joy at having her beloved commander back in her arms.

Time itself was nothing but an afterthought for the two ladies until their seemingly last breathes of oxygen forced the pair to parted from one another, if only briefly.

"I love you, Hayley."

"And I love you, Kelly."

The two stated to one another loving smiles equally shared as the tears continued to fall, a moment later time once again stood still…

"Kelly, how did you end up getting away?"

Shepard asked the edge of her eyes still tingling with newly formed tears, truthfully The Commander wanted nothing more then to continue sharing kiss after kiss with Kelly but she had a few questions she wanted answers to.

Pausing for a second the former yeoman planted a quick peck on the older woman's cheek before explaining that it was due to Commander Bailey of C-Sec, when The Reapers invaded the man did everything in his power to get her and others of "_importance_" out safely.

She assumed Kelly meant the council among others and she couldn't help but smile at the fact that Bailey had kept his word at keeping Kelly out of danger…after the attempted Cerberus coup on the citadel Shepard spoke with the senior officer asking if anything were to occur and she wasn't there at the moment that he watch over and keep Kelly from harm…

In doing so she had left an image of Kelly's new disguising look, having followed up on Shepard's advice to not take a chance with Cerberus and the only thing that had kept her alive during the coup. Only now however did The Commander take notice that her love had changed back to her original red locks of hair. Amusingly she figured all this down-time was making her usual sharp skills rusty.

That aside she took a moment to ask what had happened to Bailey, unfortunately the younger girl couldn't give her a straight answer even now she was unsure of what had become of the brave man that had kept her from harm at the hands of The Reapers.

Shepard reassured her however stating that the man was a tough veteran of a solider he'd find a way to survive. Kelly agreed with a simple nod silently praying that she was right, she'd hope to see him again one day and thank him for his bravery.

With that matter settled Shepard went on to ask how Kelly ended up finding her if she hadn't heard from Bailey. If it hadn't been him then just who had helped out the yeoman in finding her beloved commander?

"Well I got a bit of assistance on that one."

Confused she was just about to ask her what she meant by that when as if on cue another knock came at her door. The individual responsible parted it slightly to one side just enough to get a good look inside.

"Sorry but I'm not sure if I've got the right room."

Just as with Kelly, Shepard's eyes practically lidded up at the sight of her newest visitor.

"Garrus? That really you?"

"Guess I was right." The much taller turian sniper muttered under his breath as he made his way in.

"Sorry I was going to bring with me some left-over dextro-amino chocolates Doctor Michel gave to me but as usual something needed calibrating and well its easy to lose track of time."

The trio shared a quick laugh with one another not missing a beat Shepard flashed a sly grin at the alien she had come to respect and love as a brother.

"Uh huh…you sure that's the reason?"

He stared at her rather puzzled unsure what exactly she was getting at, the sight was so humorously adorable to her that it practically took everything in her power to keep The Commander from rolling over in laughter.

To her credit Kelly understandably was equally confused and remained so even after Shepard had leaned in whispering that she'd make time and tell her later about "_reach and flexibility_".

Not to say she wasn't intrigued however the young redhead's attention snapped in the direction of the turian, as did Shepard's, after he had let out a quick cough in hopes of clearing the air of the awkward moment.

"In any case at least I didn't come in here with an N7 balloon…"

Shepard found herself smiling at her dear friend's humor, although a part of her wouldn't be surprised if the alliance had something like that somewhere…they did seem to be awfully persistent on slapping the program logo on as many things as they could get away with.

"And hey guess _that _bar trip is going to have to wait, huh."

"Yeah"

She muttered glancing over at Kelly her love allowed her some personal time with her best of friends.

Embracing one another and even with a side of his face reconstructed he still gave her the best smile he could muster. She did the same as the two tapped foreheads with one another.

Kelly smiling as well at the affection shown in front of her eyes, she knew full well about the relationship Shepard had with the turian. Garrus was her number one confidant, the one individual in this entire galaxy that she could turn to for anything and everything no matter how big, small, or personal. They were the closest thing to family without being of blood relation and it made the redhead's heart swell at the sight of Shepard reuniting with her "brother".

"It's damn good to see you again, Garrus." She whispered almost curious if he had even heard her say a word, again she almost found herself on the verge of tears.

"Same to you, after all there's no Shepard without Vakarian and we still got long lives of retirement ahead of us."

She nodded in agreement as the two soon parted Kelly inching in closer just before laying an arm around Shepard's midsection. The two of them sharing a quick peck of affection afterwards The Commander instructed for Garrus to join them in an embrace. He gave her a quick grin before following up on the order.

As her weight was better supported by Garrus and Kelly's combined efforts she stared lovingly at perhaps the two most important individuals in her life. In doing so there was only one thing that came to her mind.

"They may not be here anymore but I know Mom and Pop would've loved to have met you both. Mom would have loved you, Kelly, and my old man would have respected the hell out of your skills, Garrus."

Her eyes shut close Shepard couldn't help but allow a few tears roll down the sides of her content face. In response Garrus gave her an understanding tap on the shoulder while Kelly leaned in kissing The Commander's cheek, causing the two redheads to blush hard…

Later crutch back in hand Shepard asked the turian if he was the one responsible for bringing Kelly to the Dakota. He denied however stating that as much as he would like to take the entirety of the credit there was more to it then that. He followed up by adding in that it was best if she saw for herself.

Now it was her turn to be unsure of what was happening but Kelly insisted she follow him ultimately figuring why the hell not.

"Oh but before that well…hell Shepard you always looked like crap, just have Kelly slap on some makeup here and there and you'll be good to go."

She honestly paused for a moment chuckling as she realized what he was getting at.

"Been saving that one for a long time, huh, Vakarian?"

He didn't verbally response but she could make out the slight sound of muffled laughter…

Entering what she believed was a private waiting room Shepard soon caught sight and came to understand what Kelly had meant about assistance and why Garrus had stated that he couldn't take full credit.

"Goddess"

"Keelah"

"Skipper"

"Commander"

"Lola"

"Shepard"

Her squad-mates, along with incredibly loyal pilot, were all here all waiting for her!

She smiled deeply as she eyed each and every one of them, relatively unchanged from the last time she had actually seen them all together.

Liara however took a moment to step forward before anyone else.

"By the Goddess it is ever so good to see you again, Shepard."

"It's great to see you too, Liara."

She smiled to match the one on the lips of the beautiful Asari. The two of them had a deep history with one another, lovers at one point until an unintentional falling out caused the redheaded woman to turn her eyes and heart toward the young woman beside her.

Still even after their relationship had been downgraded the two of them still considered the other a solid and trustworthy friend.

"Liara, was this because of you?"

She was still looking for answers to her questions.

"In a way, once I was able to confirm you were indeed alive obviously everyone wanted to see you again…but there was a more personal matter. One that I felt I owed it not only to myself but…to her."

The asari paused as she pointed straight at Kelly Chambers!

"You did this for Kelly?"

Liara nodded explaining that despite what had occurred she never harbored any ill will toward the young redhead and she didn't have to search within Shepard's mind to know how much the former yeoman meant to her that much was clear as a day on earth was long. So after picking up Chambers from a civilian evacuation vessel it was decided that she would be the first to see Shepard.

Liara knew how much happiness it would bring to Shepard's heart to see Kelly again after so long and there was no way she could live with herself if she stood in between the passionate connection the two of them truly shared with one another.

In the end Shepard understood it all deciding to thank the wonderful asari with a gentle hug.

"Thank you, Liara, for understanding, for your friendship, and for your respect."

"Things may have turned out differently between us but I'll always be here, Shepard."

She watched the asari state as they broke apart but just before they could completely part ways she held on to Liara's wrist.

"Now just hold on. We're not going to do this by the books, hell when have I ever done anything by the book? No, I want all of you to come on over here and give your commanding officer a hug she'll always remember!"

Absolutely no one in attendance had to be told twice, even the harden Prothean warrior Javik much to her surprise and delight even if he was the last one to do so, as they stampeded on towards her surrounding the charismatic woman with warm and affection from each and every side.

For the first time in a long time Shepard felt at peace with herself, at peace with her actions and sacrifices, as she stood there surrounded by those who respected her more then any other that cared for her and most of all that loved her for everything she was.

The tears came again as the emotional dam she had build up over the years had begun to break since Kelly's stunning arrival but she didn't care this was her deserved moment.

Eyes watery she stared toward the ceiling high above envisioning the forms of those who were no longer with them.

"_You did good child…you did real good..._"

Anderson's final words came flooding back to her and she smiled, looking around her now she knew she had done just that and so much more.

This was the peace the victory she had worked so hard and long for and on a personal level this was at last what it felt to truly be alive again.

**~Epilogue~**

Ten years have passed since the war with The Reapers came to a close. Galactic civilization as a whole still recovering from the wounds left from a conflict that could have seen the end of them all.

However the camaraderie of coming together to stop the reapers has seen many a world rebuild in record time instead of what would have normally taken decades if not centuries to complete and while the Earth still heals the Alliance has continued to push forward.

At the helm is one such ship, The Normandy SR-2…

As she exited out of the war room she was instantly met with the salutes of her faithful guardswomen, Campbell and Westmoreland.

She smiled after the latter had stumbled on the proper rank address, to be brutally honest she wasn't quite used to it either so instead of reprimanding the woman such as Campbell had she simply hand-waved it off telling her that she'd nail it next time.

Even after all this time no one would dare question her commanding style but everyone sure as hell enjoyed how calm and laid back that same style was in comparison to practically every other military vessel out there.

As she passed by the Combat Information Center, CIC for short, she greeted her Comm. Specialist Samantha Traynor, the woman had stuck with her as part of the ship's crew since the war and neither she nor Traynor saw any reason to part ways.

Afterwards she continued on her way numerous members of her crew greeting and saluting their commanding superior until eventually she came upon the entrance to the bridge.

"Hey Comma…um I mean Admiral Shepard!"

The ace flyer stated as he attempted to laugh away his mistake, in his defense the promotion in rank still felt so foreign to him that it was the equivalent of attempting to break away from a usual habit.

"Don't worry about it, Joker, it's been a while now and it still feels strange to me as well."

It was really no different for her she was so accustomed to her previous military position that she often had to remind herself of the promotion.

"Yeah well maybe you should have taken my advice that one time and legally changed your name to Commander."

He amusingly mentioned to her after having his seat spin over in her direction.

"…Too bad there are no reapers around to shoot me in the head enough times for that to actually sound like a good idea."

He eyed her curiously before she muttered out, that was a joke. His co-pilot smiled even after he had stated that she should stick to her day job.

"Anyway as usual let me give you the run down. Ash has checked in, Vega's ready to go, Garrus is busy…calibrating as usual, Glyph states that Liara's all set, Doc Michel's on standby, same with Cortez, the engine trio of Adams, Gabby, and Ken say all's green, Kolyat's in prayer, while Falere's in meditation…"

He paused the roll call for a moment however, "…that said the only one that hasn't checked in is…Hey!"

The pilot shouted out just as his cap had been pilfered right off the top of his head, the literal thief materializing right next to him not a second later.

Kasumi Goto, the best at what she did which was nabbing and getting away with anything she could set her mind or delicate fingertips on.

"Sorry Jokey just having a little fun."

She humorously twirled the worn-in cap a few times around her finger before placing back on its original resting place, at top Joker's head of hair.

"I knew Shep wouldn't mind." She mentioned turning her attention over toward the redheaded admiral.

Shepard sharp as ever stated that she was still surprised that Kasumi had returned to the Normandy. In response the expert thief stated that the decision was a lot easier to make now that "the giant metal squids from dark space" had been dead for a decade.

Keeping with the light tone of conversation Shepard amusingly brought up Kasumi's previous infatuation with Jacob Taylor.

"Surprised I didn't have to use him as a means of getting you on-board."

"Jacob's an alright guy and a decent dad from what I hear but I was young and stupid back then so things change you know."

The hooded thief chuckled mildly while Shepard shot her a curious look.

"So…there's always James then."

Kasumi shrugged as she stated that there was a possibility however before she could be pressed further she turned on heel and made for the nearby doorway.

"Of course there's always Ashley to consider…"

She quipped with a sly cat-like grin leaving a rather stunning silence to match that of Shepard and Joker's reactions…

"Did she just…nah that had to be a joke! Either that or I'm dreaming." Joker stated attempting to get his thoughts back in working order.

Shepard suggesting she could give him a good pinch just to make sure.

"Yeah except for the fun side-effect of having my bones turn to dust if you did."

Clearly the pilot just wanted to move things along.

"There is a small probability that Kasumi's statement was in fact humor-related, born simply to play on your more…private thoughts, Jeff."

Apparently it was going to be a long and tiring work day for The Normandy's pilot Shepard doing her best not to laugh at the poor man's misfortune.

"Excuse me Shepard but I'm receiving word that your presence is requested over at your private cabin."

"Thanks for that, EDI."

The admiral said her goodbyes and began to make her exit when she was suddenly stopped by her loyal pilot.

"Hey Shepard I know I've said it a thousand times but…thanks for bringing _her_ back."

She knew exactly who he was speaking of.

"Don't thank me, Joker; thank EDI for hiding away a part of herself in my omni-tool."

She didn't have to see them to know that the pair was sharing a joyful look with one another so instead she finally got around to making her leave…

Minutes later as she entered her private quarters she came upon the most inviting sight of her dear wife, sporting her old N7 hoodie along with some work-issued pants, sitting quietly on their shared bed an infant no more then a year old resting peacefully in her spouse's arms.

The two exchanged simple greetings with one another capping off with kiss serving as a quick token of affection.

"You missed it, she fell asleep right before you came in."

The younger woman mentioned as Shepard took a seat right beside her and their child.

"She can be quite stubborn when she wants to be."

She explained how the babe must have gotten the trait from her "Papa", in response her wife smiled while snuggling in closer to her.

"I know it sounds strange but Shepard did you ever wonder if we'd ever reach a place like this in our lives."

She paused, a clear smile on her lips as she took the child into an embrace of her own.

"At one time I was just a kid from Midoir, Kelly, later it was fighting tooth and nail against The Reapers. Up until the war was over I don't believe I ever had a chance to actually sit down and think things through…"

She ran a hand through her daughter's slight red locks of hair before she continued on.

"But meeting you changed everything and I'll forever be thankful at the life I've been blessed with. I've seen and experienced a lot of things both good and bad, done feats that have been deemed impossible, but together with you by my side I've been able to put my darkest days behind me and focus on what really matters…because despite all the accolades all the commendations that have shaped my storied career my greatest accomplishment is that I can honestly call myself a mother."

As she rested her head on Shepard's shoulder it seemed to Kelly that her love still had more to say.

"My greatest legacy Kelly won't be that I brought an end to the reapers. It will be this little bundle of joy dreaming peacefully in my arms, our dearest Abigail and whatever the future may bring her way."

Turning her attention over towards Kelly the two ladies locked eyes with one another, blue met green and in a moment's notice shared a loving kiss with one another.

"I love you, Hayley Shepard."

"And I love you, Kelly Chambers Shepard."

The redheaded mothers then shared a second kiss of affection as they each held onto their little girl.

As she and Kelly continued to share their moment together she smiled figuring that as he watched over her Anderson would have never had any doubts of her going on to become a good if not fantastic mother.

For Kelly she could have never envisioned the turn her life had taken after being assigned to the position of Shepard's Yeoman all those years ago especially after the terror brought forth from the kidnapping at the hands of the now extinct alien race, The Collectors, but the night-terrors were at last over she no longer feared the images of the past instead each night slept soundly with her love dreaming of the future they would always share and of the child she would do absolutely anything for.

For Shepard life couldn't be any more perfect. At one time it seemed as if death and destruction were all that followed her around. The sacrifices the casualties all piling up in such a fashion that at one point she was perfectly fine with meeting her end on the battlefield but instead she was spared time and time again and for the longest time could never wrap her head around the reason why.

It wasn't until Kelly's surprising arrival after the war was over that her eyes were finally opened to the truth, why it was that she had survived why she had been given the chance to continue on with her life. In that moment she remembered the phrase "_it's always darkest just before dawn_" and she believed it because she was a living example.

For a time she had believed that the reunion with her crew after the war had easily been the greatest moment of her life but as she sat here with an arm around Kelly and the other around her sweet little Abigail she came to the conclusion that this scene this simplistic moment right here was the pinnacle of her life for there was nowhere else she rather be then here in the shared cabin with her beautiful wife and their adorable baby girl.

* * *

**Author's Notes:** With the Extended Cut released last week now felt as good a time as any to get back into writing up something Mass Effect-related and while I'm very much satisfied with what the EC provided there was still one thing I felt was missing, this story is the end result of that thought.

It also serves as the direct continuation of my previous Mass Effect tale so even though the main pairing of the story is still heavily focused on Shepard and Kelly I also felt the need to show some love toward Garrus and Liara especially the turian who really is the closest thing Shepard has to a brother, if not romanced.

Secondly I really wanted to stress how human Shepard still is so hopefully the idea of her emotions overflowing and actually crying as much as she does here doesn't come off as unrealistic to how some perceive Shepard to be.

Finally in case anyone is wondering the selection of the squad during the epilogue is a little on personal favoritism and who I believe would be perfect matches for those that are no longer a part of the Normandy crew, such as Tali and Javik who would most likely depart after the war to tend to their own personal matters.

So if a personal favorite of yours isn't on there don't hate me for it. That said while this story is done who knows wither or not I ever craft another tale involving "The Shepard" and her squad, regardless if the setting is during this time-skip or long before it.

So thanks for reading and I hope you've enjoyed it as much as I did crafting and writing it all down.


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